Page 42 of Chasing You

“You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” Kash pressed. He had noticed Adele had been a little odd lately, but he assumed he was still dealing with the hurt he felt over Kash keeping so much from him.

God, he was so self-absorbed sometimes.

Adele sighed. “I know. It’s not really a talking-out problem. Not really.”

“It’s a hugging problem?” Kash asked with a brow raised.

Adele laughed and shrugged. “Annoying, I know.”

Kash held Adele a little tighter. “You’re never annoying, even when you’re being a damn moron.”

He sniffed, laughing into the side of Kash’s neck. “Yeah, I guess. It’s what makes me lovable though, right?”

Kash grinned and closed his eyes, swaying both of their bodies with the motion of the boat. “Yeah. One of many, many reasons I’ll always love you.” And God, did he mean that in every single way, with every fiber of his being.

They stayed like that for a long while before Adele broke away. They kept close as the ferry approached the small dock, and Kash could see a handful of people walking around the shore, but it was mostly dead. He could smell fried food on the breeze, and he could hear faint island music playing on what was probably an old, rusted speaker.

It was nice. No, it was more than nice. It was perfect.

Adele didn’t move to disembark until most of the other passengers were gone, and Kash appreciated it. It meant he didn’t have to force his body to hurry as they climbed down the very narrow, steep stairs. He leaned heavily on his caneas they passed by a couple crew members, and he ignored their pointed stares.

He didn’t know if it was real or if he was just afraid people were staring now that he was using a cane. It made his insides feel weird though—kind of squiggly and anxious. He rubbed at his stomach with his free hand as he regained his equilibrium after being out on the water for so long.

“Okay,” Adele said, hiking the bag high on his shoulder, “do we want to find a place to set up shop, or do you want to get food?”

“I think if I eat, I’ll be sick,” Kash admitted.

Adele looked relieved. “Good. I don’t think they’re going to run out of anything, and I’d love to take my shirt off and bask in the sun while my stomach settles from the damn boat.”

Kash’s mouth went a little dry. He doubted he’d ever get tired of seeing Adele take his shirt off. The man was a goddamn work of art with his perfectly formed abs and the thatch of hair right between his pecs. He had small, light pink nipples and freckles like constellations all down his ribs. It took everything in Kash not to put his mouth on those little specks every time he saw Adele exposed.

He licked his lips, then followed Adele down the blue-rubber walkway that covered a long path toward the shore. It didn’t last though, and soon enough, his feet were sinking into sand. He hadn’t considered that it was going to be a problem, but five steps in and he was stuck.

“Hey,” he said softly. His voice barely carried over the waves.

Adele turned his head, and his mouth tipped down in the corners. “Shit. It’s the sand, isn’t it?”

“My feet aren’t loving it.” Kash shrugged. “Why don’t I sit up at the restaurant, and you can?—”

“How much pride will you have to swallow if I piggyback you?”

Kash closed his eyes for a second and let out a sigh. The answer was all of it. But he needed to crack and shatter those walls he was holding up because if he didn’t, they would always stand between him and doing the things he loved. He looked from left to right, but it seemed like most of the people on the boat had gone to the welcome center—likely for the boat tour—and they were almost entirely alone.

“You don’t think I’m too heavy?” Kash asked. It was a foolish question, considering the weight Adele had to haul around for his job.

He scoffed and walked over to Kash, dropping the bag and sinking to his knees. Fuck, Kash loved him in that position. His cock gave a feeble twitch, but he wasn’t hard, and thank God for that because Adele would have definitely noticed.

Throwing his arms around Adele’s neck, Kash let his body weight sink onto his best friend’s back, and then he was lifted into the air. Adele picked up the bag like it was nothing, then began the slow trek across the soft sand toward the hard pack where the water had tamped it down.

He paused a few feet from the shore. “Try here.”

Kash was reluctant to let him go, but he was grateful when he could walk again. They didn’t go too far, Adele picking a spot next to what looked like the remnants of a fire pit, and he began to unpack the blanket and the small pop-up umbrella that gave them enough shade to combat the afternoon sun.

“Come here,” Adele said.

He glanced over to see Adele’s arms open. “What—” Before he could finish his sentence, Adele had swept him up in a cradle, then eased him down to the thick towel. He scowled at his friend. “I didn’t need that kind of help. I can sit on my own.”

Adele grinned at him and shrugged as he flopped down onto his side. “I know. That was for me.”

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